Invalid&#39;s chair



y 1948- H. D. MAYFIELD 2,442,303

INVALID S CHAIR Filed Aug. 18, 1945 5 Sheets-Shee 1 I m/erztor HERBERT .H Mn YF/ELO WW e]:

25, 1948. Y I D 2,442,303

INVALIDS CHAIR Filed Aug. 18, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet -2 l WW L m j I 28 l HERBERT fl MAYF/ELU B, 2km

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May 25, 1948. H. D. MAYFI'ELD 2,442,303

INVALID S CHAIR Filed Aug. 18, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Inventor By QMM Patented May 25, 1948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE INVALIDS CHAIR Herbert D. Mayfield, Middlebourne, W. Va.

Application August 18, 1945, Serial No. 611,291 Claims. (01. 15528) The invention relates to a chair construction, and more especially to an automatic lifting and seating chair.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of a chair of this character by means of which a user afliicted with muscular disorder can be brought to a standing position or a sitting position as desired without the assistance of another person.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a chair of this character having means whereby the seat and back are raised and lowered through a hydraulic lift unit located beneath the seat of the chair and regulated manually by the occupant whether seated or standing.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a chair of this character, which is simple in construction, reliable and efiicient in operation, strong, durable, neat in appearance, readily and easily controlled, possessed of few parts, comfortable, and inexpensive to manufacture.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which disclose the preferred embodiment of the invention, and pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a side view of a chair constructed in accordance with the invention, showing by full lines the seat in normal lowered position and by dotted lines in a raised position.

Figure 2 is a front view of the chair.

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken approximately on a line 33 of Figure 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken approximately on the line 5-5 of Figure 1 looking in th direction of the arrows.

Figure 6 is a longitudinal sectional view taken substantially through the center line of the portion of the apparatus shown in Figure 5.

Figure '7 is a sectional view taken on the line 1-1 of Figure 1.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the chair constructed in accordance with the invention comprises a leg frame [0, a vertically swingable seat section ll, a vertically shiftable back section I! and upstandingside arms l3, respectively. The seat section II is suitably hinged at the frontal portion thereof to the leg frame In for vertical swinging movement upwardly and in a forward direction or reversely thereto. The back l2 has horizontal hinge connection [4 to the rearmost portion of the section II and is shiftable in a vertical direction on the swinging of the seat section.

Arranged below the seat section I I is a hydraulically operated lifting jack I5 which has its piston cylinder connected by a pivot bearing Hi to the underside of the seat section ll while the operating piston ll of this jack l5 has pivotal connection l8 with a support [9 carried by a selectedcross rung 20 of the leg frame Ill. The back 12 has a pivotal linkage H with the leg frame Ill so that when the jack I5 is operated to lift the seat section II the back I2 will be shifted in a perpendicular direction, the vertical shifting thereof with the lifting of the seat section II being shown by dotted lines in Figure 1.

The hydraulic mechanism for the operation of the chair comprises a unit including a fluid pipe 22 which communicates with the lower portion of the cylinder of the jack l5 and also with a plunger barrel 23 which has communication at 24 with the upper portion of the cylinder of jack I5. The operation of the plunger '25 within the barrel 23 exerts fluid pressure on the lower part of the cylinder of the jack [5 through pipe 22 past a check return valve 26 and forces fluid through a check return valve 21 into the upper portion of the cylinder of the jack [5 so that the piston will be forced outwardly of the cylinder thus effecting the lifting of the seat and back of the chair to bring an occupant therein to a, standing position. A by-pass tube 28 connects the barrel 23 with the pipe 22 and this by-pass lead is regulated by a manually operated needle valve 29 in a valve casing 30 next to the pipe 22. The valve 29 through worm gear connections 3| is controlled by a turning stem 32 vertically journaled in bearings 33 to one side arm l3 of the chair, while the plunger 25 is actuated by a throw lever 34 mounted at 35 beneath the seat section II of such chair. To lower the seat section and the back the fluid is admitted to the cylinder to move the piston thereof inwardly.

When the seat section H and the back l2 are raised the chair will stand substantially vertically on the leg frame l0, thus automatically standing the patient. Correspondingly, when the patient wishes to sit down, he or she leans back against the seat and back while they are in a vertical position. Then the jack is regulated so that the seat section II and the back l2 will move to a lowered position against the fluid pressure in the cylinder, thus bringing the patient to seated position.

From the foregoing it will now be seen that there is herein provided a device accomplishing all the objeots oii this inyention, and others, including many advantages of great practical utility and commercial importance.

As many embodiments may be made of the inventive concept, and as many modifications may be made in the embodiment herein shown ands described it is to be understood that all matter herein is to be interpreted merely as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. A chair of the nature described comprising a leg frame, a cross rung .between the legs thereof, ashackleflink;D YQ 84 fifi mfe fiflzlafi ml o e d ors id;cras m eiav rti allmd posedb c memb t pivotally: mounted o the ot er nd; or sa d shackle, links a, seat nir tal yrs urc atca h. end to. said=backiandlsaid g frame, resp tiv y.- and means pivotally; secured to saidcrossrung and saidseat ateach end-thereoigfor-urging thesaid seatnarcuately upwardv and the said back vertically upward. i. znAvchair. of the. nature described comprisin a Iegirame, across rung. between the legs ithereof, a; shack-leilink: pivotally secured; adjacent, one

end of said cross:run ,-v ayertically disposed backmember pivotally mounted: on: the; otherend: of,

saidshacklelinka seat-pivotally, secured atzeach end to. saidback and saidleg, ,frame respectively and means! pivotallysecured-to saidscross rung and-said, seat athcachendgthereofl for urging the said seatarcuately, llpwardand the ,saidback vertically upward, saidjmeanscomprisingi a hydraulic jack, manual control means 'on an arm, of the said seat and hydraulic control means secured to one of said arms whereby upon actuation of the Jack the said pivoted members are restricted in movement such that the back moves vertically and. slightly ina-horizontal direction while the sseatispivoted arcuately about the pivots on said leg frame.

M4. The combination of claim 1, said urging means comprising a jack, means for selectively cc t o li ath l c u t n q z e diackiI.:. The com inat bn f lai aisa d i cka tw ation control means including a rod adjacent the said seat. 1 11 t l HERBERTD. MAY'FIELD;

ammi iwe H h .The: following references are of record in the file of this patent;

I uNIf 'ED srATEs, P TEnTs I Number Name I Date- 1,288,'216- Sayles .Dec; 17, 1918- 1,301,429 Givner Apr. 22, 1919 a QR IQN PATENT Number QCountry .l Daten;

373,479 ,Qreat Britain May26,:1932 398,7;56 Germany :-Ju1y-17, .1924; 705,693 France Mar. 16, 1931 

